GAO: CNMI employers’ use of CW-1 permits keeps dropping

While CNMI employers obtained 94% of available CNMI-Only Transitional Worker (CW-1) permits in fiscal year 2018, this rate dropped to only 49% in 2020, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office report on Wednesday.

CNMI employers’ use of the CW-1 permits continued to drop to 37% of available permits in fiscal year 2021, and 35% in fiscal year 2022, the same report added.

In each fiscal year between 2018 and 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services approved between 82 and 84% of CW-1 applications, GAO said.

It said the number of CW-1 permits USCIS approved in the five-year period from fiscal years 2018 through 2022 remained below the established numerical limits in those years and declined significantly starting in 2020.

In fiscal year 2018, the approved CW-1 permits totaled 9,389 and the remaining number of available permits were 609, while the approved CW-1 permits in in fiscal year 2019 totaled 11,611, with the remaining available permits at 1,389.

In fiscal year 2020, 7,529 permits were approved and 7,971 were available; in fiscal year 2021, 5,584 were approved and 9,416 were available; in fiscal year 2022, 5,104 were approved and 9,396 were available.

According to GAO, USCIS and CNMI officials said the factors that caused the total CNMI workforce to shrink during calendar years 2018 to 2022 also likely caused a decline in applications for CW-1 permits, leading to the decline in approved permits.

According to USCIS and CNMI officials, for example, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly restricted travel, reducing the number of tourists who could boost the economy and of employers who might have otherwise applied for CW-1 permits.

In addition, the closure of the largest casino, Imperial Pacific International (CNMI) LLC, on Saipan before completion of all its buildings meant fewer jobs in CNMI, contributing to a lower number of CW-1 applications.

Other factors related to the CW-1 permit process may have further decreased CW-1 permit applications.

For example, GAO said, USCIS officials noted that some employers may have been deterred from applying for CW-1 permits when new requirements and higher fees for the CW-1 permit took effect in 2020.

The transition period during which CW-1 workers may be admitted to perform work is set to end on Dec. 31, 2029, or three months into fiscal year 2030. After this date, no CW-1 permits are authorized to be issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

GAO reviewed the CNMI’s worker data and reporting from 2018 to 2022. The NMI U.S. Workforce Act of 2018 includes a provision for GAO to report every two years on the ratio between U.S. and foreign workers in CNMI’s workforce in each of the previous five calendar years. This latest report is GAO’s third in response to the provision.